SOUTHEAST TEXAS RECORD

With both houses now under Republican control, Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, is moving to push patent reform through the legislature.

For the past several years, the Record has reported on the numerous patent lawsuits filed in the Eastern District of Texas, which some groups refer to as a haven for patent trolls.

Patent trolls are people or companies that do not manufacture or supply products, but rather seek to enforce patent rights against accused infringers in an attempt to collect licensing fees.

On Thursday Sen. Cornyn spoke to an American Enterprise Institute panel about the importance of patent reform.

Afterwards, Sen. Cornyn posted the following statement on his Facebook page: “We need key reforms to reduce abusive patent litigation so that innovators waste less time and money on frivolous lawsuits, and I’m hopeful that this is the kind of bipartisan legislation that America’s new majority can get to the President’s desk.”

The senator also made the following posts on Twitter:

- I am hopeful that a patent reform is the kind of bipartisan legislation that America's new majority can get to POTUS' desk;

- We need key reforms to reduce abusive patent litigation so that innovators waste less time and money on costly, frivolous litigation.

Cornyn is currently working to pass the Innovation Act – a bill aimed changing the rules governing patent infringement lawsuits in an attempt to reduce frivolous lawsuits brought by patent trolls.